Ryouko Kagayaki
About: Originally from a small mountain village in the Johto region, Ryouko first travelled to Raccolto to grow as her own person. Personality: Quiet, Pushover, Well-Meaning, Reliable. Ry is a very passive personality. Constantly having her every action controlled growing up lead her to doubt herself in social interactions. She often prefers to let others lead while she picks up the slack. Despite her upbringing, her sister constantly reprimands her trusting nature. She is easily lied to because she wants to believe in the best in a person. No matter how often she is led astray by empty promises, she keeps faith and pushes on. She always has a second chance for anyone who has done her wrong before. Reliable- If Ry says she will do something, she will. She tries to live by her word, which doesn’t always work in her favour. Having been conditioned to not appear incapable, she will attempt tasks entrusted to her even at her own detriment. Ry has been slowly learning to recognize when she should say no, but still struggles to deny people favours. Struggles to differentiate between what she considers moral and the supremacy teachings of her childhood. She exudes a carefully crafted mask of approach-ability , not out of malice but as her sister would say, “fake it till you make it” – and without the mask she’s a bowl of nerves, sprinkled with insecurity and a dash of tongue tied, all served up with a side dish of a history of chastisement for slights and being found inadequate. Her resting face, oozes of poise and charm, but is leftover lessons from her youth. She has no idea that the shift from ice queen to sweet charm is unsettling enough to negate her efforts. Small steps. Tldr: Ry is a disciplined, poised sweetheart on the outside, constant screaming noodle wreck on the inside. Gifts History: From home to the world The Kagayaki family were the founders of a small village a little bit east of Blackthorne city. It was known that many in the Kagayaki family manifested dragon totems. Dragons were the surest and greatest of pokemon. Their unparalleled strength, bountiful wisdom and fear inducing ferocity; to be able to boast of so many in the family was a point of pride. Kagayaki Keiko, the 6th gen heir, became an orphan at a young age to the grief of their village. Her grandfather chose to reclaim the burden of the position until she became of age. Or, to more conniving family members, a more suitable heir determined. The family was strife with discontent. Grandfather's eldest daughter thought her son was the most suited for the role of family head. The youngest aunt thought her sister was power hungry and too eager to see her son gain what she could not get. Especially so soon after their beloved brothers's disappearance. Taking heed of the malcontent among her children, grandmother Kagayaki chose to adopt a young Ry as the companion child for a then toddler Keiko, suspecting that the young heiress could use someone in her life to trust and rely on. At the orphange, Ry was greatly used to being ignored by the older kids and too old for the littler ones. She was inherently shy and constantly teased -though not maliciously- over her incessant growth spurts. When the kindly looking Mrs. "choose" her, she thought her heart would burst. She wasn't anything special, a "cry-baby" "bean-sprout" who was "too old" for new parents to take a risk on. Although she was 8, eavesdropping had informed her that her gangly limbs and too small clothes excluded her from the usually desired age-group. To finally have someone decide that among all the children there, she was who they wanted, was the happiest moment in her life so far. Her new home was intimidating, but she tried her best to adapt to the new life and rules introduced to her. Then she met little Keiko. It was the greatest responsibility she'd ever had in her life. To be someone's big sister. What a new and kind of scary thing. Even though the orphange had it's cliques of children, Ry would usually be on the outskirts. And now, she had a whole new family, and a little sister, this little person who giggled little spit bubbles and smiled gummy smiles at her and would look up to her and it made her feel like she found somewhere to belong. Unfortunately, this also meant that there was now a new contender in the family feud. No matter whether unwilling or unknowingly. She needed many lessons to be brought up to speed on what she needed to know as a Kagayaki child. Etiquette, arts, languages. She learnt about the history of her family. Great great great Grandfather was a dragon rancher, who settled down in the area due to its proximity to wild dragons. Using the strength of his stable animals, he was able to extend protection to his fellow neighbours from pest pokemon and bandits. His dogged determination and shrew business knowledge led him to help his neighbours prosper. Increased exports and used revenue to secure more land for the family. Expanded the family through branch families and allowed the village establish stable roots. And for this reason, she should be proud of her totem, as dragons are a symbol of success. But then, she would hear some cousins whispering (regurgitating) comments about the stray who came and think they belong. She bounced between hearing "your totem is proof of your superiority" and "you are not blood, and not worthy". By it's nature, a dratini is always changing, and always growing. Unfortunately, this meant that Ry was susceptible to the fluctuating influences around her. Most times she felt happy, eager to absorb all the new knowledge she was gaining, taught as if she was a legitimate child. Other times she felt like she had no value beyond her totem- after all, she was adopted because of her typing. It was a constant flux of indoctrination to the family mentality while being reminded that she was an outsider. She did her best to be bigger than the negative whispers. She had to be a role model for Keiko, and she'd just have to prove that she belonged by excelling at her lessons. Unfortunately she, try as she might, she was very average at the desired skills. It was the discipline required by all the lessons, that remained ingrained. This was the precedent for her new life. Isolation with small oasis's of happiness. While the extended family couldn't harm Keiko, the extra was fair game for their mindgames. Growing up she found herself withdrawing from many of the family, but there remained one solace in her life. Rambunctous, stubborn little Keiko. Thanks to Keiko, their home was a foster home for abandoned and stray Pokémon that Keiko took in. Ry adored these many friends, but the brief bonds she shared with them always left her a little empty. She would often make small clay sculptures of her temporary friends to remember them by. Her younger sister took great interest in her skills and bought her a manual for glass blowing not knowing the difference between the arts. Ry fell in love with the art, as it seemed to capture memories in beautiful pieces. Without the means, however, she could not pursue it. Instead she dedicated herself her sculpture-making and refined the skill she had. Longing to one day work with glass. It wasn't until her late teens that anything became possible. In their teens, Keiko gained a better established authority in the household. And was able to strong arm the family into allowing Ry to to pursue an apprenticeship under a local glass maker. Unbeknownst to Ry, it was in the hopes that Ry would able to use it as a way to become self-sufficient and escape the scrutiny of the family. As her younger her sister was always the dominant personality of the duo, Ryouko felt fortunate that Keiko grew up with a kind heart and strong will. At 19 she began her apprenticeship under a gruff, surly slugma named Hisoka. He was from one of the few households in the village that was not a branch family to the Kagayaki name. His soft heart extended to his most recent apprentice, understanding her situation. Without any fear of repercussion from the main house, he was able to do his best untangle the web restricting the young dratini. He strove to give her confidence in herself. Enough for her to develop into someone other than “the sister of” – not that she thought the description was an issue, but he said that he needed to find herself. Which makes no sense because, she was right there- and Stop laughing Keiko. During her apprenticeship, she found a stray houndour rummaging through some garbage. Her teacher encouraged her to adopt and train the Pokémon as he recognized her peace in having responsibilities. The joy of training with Hisoka in a trade that was her life's dream. Being able to fully embrace her nurturing and compassionate nature with Dalgo. And over time gaining confidence within herself and who she was. These positive experiences accumulated until Ryouko evolved from the malleable dratini into a dragonair with a more focused grasp of her own growth. Some years back, Ry sought a fresh start away from her family and discovered Raccolto. She loved life on the islands. But with time, felt like her life had become stagnant and all creativity had fizzled out. She chose to make a pilgrimage to the orange islands, in search of the rumoured crystal onix. Her initial search was unsuccessful. Instead she found herself settling on Sunburst island until she could learn more about the myth. It was during her time there that her sister contacted her, stressed about the demands of the family. The were becoming increasingly burdensome in recent years and while Keiko sought only a comforting ear, the conversation sparked memories of the peaceful Raccolto life. Ryouko hatched up a plan, to offer her sister peace and solitude- after all, it was about time she repaid her sister’s kindness and sacrifice in allowing her the life she had. Pokemon Owned: All pokemon currently in her care Friends and Family Family These are the immediate people in her life~ Friends These are the people Ry holds dearest! Category:Residents